. >>> cancer is now the leading cause of death among hispanics in the united states. and it's the latest sign cancer is beginning to displace heart disease as the nation's top cause of death. one reason for the higher rate is that the hispanic population in the u.s. as a whole is younger than other ethnic groups, and cancer tends to kill people at a younger age than heart disease. but as nbc bay area's marianne favro shows us, other bay areas may be putting some hispanic at higher risk of getting cancer. >> reporter: the barriers are both cultural and socio-economic. but thanks to one program reaching out to the south bay hispanic community, those roadblocks are starting to be removed. damiana flores is a health educator to interest community outreach latinos contra cancer in san jose. she has made it her mission to spread the word about the importance of breast cancer screening, a quest that is very personal because of her own battle with breast cancer 12 years ago. she says her diagnosis stunned her so much, she didn't tell anyone for four days. a new report shows c